Three-dimensional printing system

ABSTRACT

Certain examples described herein relate to a removable unit for a three dimensional printing system. The removable unit comprises at least one compartment to store build material for a three-dimensional print job, a coupling to engage with a printer device of the three-dimensional printing system, and a memory. The memory is configured to store instructions for the three-dimensional print job for the printer device, and the instructions are readable from the memory by the printer device when the removable unit is engaged with the printer device.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/097,703 filedOct. 30, 2018 which is a national stage of international application no.PCT/US2016/044694 filed Jul. 29, 2016, each incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a common term used to describeadditive manufacturing methods and systems. In this field, 3D printersbuild three-dimensional (3D) objects from selective addition of buildmaterial. In an example system, build material is formed in layers in aworking area. Chemical agents, referred to as “printing agents”, arethen selectively deposited onto each layer within the working area. Inone case, the printing agents may comprise a fusing agent and adetailing agent. In this case, the fusing agent is selectively appliedto a layer in areas where particles of the build material are to fusetogether, and the detailing agent is selectively applied where thefusing action is to be reduced or amplified. For example, a detailingagent may be applied to reduce fusing at an object boundary to produce apart with sharp and smooth edges. Following the application of printingagents, energy is applied to the layer. This fuses particles of buildmaterial. The process is then repeated for another layer, such thatobjects are built from a series of cross-sections. In certain examples,a 3D object is designed within 3D modelling software installed on adesign workstation. The 3D modelling software may then submit a printjob to a 3D printer to initiate the build process.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Examples of the disclosure will be described with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1 a, 1 b and 1 c show schematic views of an example 3D printsystem;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a comparative example 3D print systemand an instructing user terminal;

FIGS. 3 a-3 c show example components of a 3D print system;

FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of an example 3D print system;

FIG. 5 shows an expanded example view of the 3D print system in FIG. 4and an instructing user terminal;

FIG. 6 shows another expanded example view of the 3D print system inFIG. 4 and an instructing user terminal;

FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of an example method of 3D printing; and

FIG. 8 shows a schematic view of an example non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain examples described herein provide adapted components for, andmethods of instructing, an additive manufacturing system. In certaincases, a removable unit for the additive manufacturing system is used toprovide print job instructions for at least the printer device, whereinthe removable unit also provides build material to construct an object(or objects) defined within the instructions. This may be compared tocomparative methods where print job instructions are provided directlyto the printer device, e.g. where a print job is transmitted to theprinter device following processing by a printer driver on a designworkstation.

FIGS. 1 a, 1 b and 1 c show a 3D print system 100 comprising threecomponents: a printer device 101; a material processing station 102; anda removable unit 103.

The printer device 101 is configured to deposit printing agents ontosuccessive layers of build material to construct at least one 3D object.In one example, the printer device 101 may comprise an inkjet-typedeposit mechanism, such as a thermal or piezo printhead. The printingagents may comprise a fusing agent and a detailing agent. The printerdevice 101 may also comprise energy sources such as incandescent and/orinfra-red lamps to apply energy to the layers of build material toenable fusing. The following disclosure may also be applied to otherforms of powder bed additive manufacturing. The printer device 101 isconfigured to construct a 3D object based on instructions forming partof a print job. These print job instructions may control the movementand/or firing of a printing agent deposition mechanism, and/or to applya fusing energy so as to fuse portions of build material that form partof an object's cross section.

The removable unit 103 comprises at least one compartment to store buildmaterial for a print job. As such the removable unit 103 may be referredto as a “build” unit. The build material may be supplied, in oneexample, in the form of a polymer powder. In some examples, theremovable unit 103 may also be used to store fused and unfused buildmaterial during processing of a print job. The removable unit 103 ismoveable and may be removably coupled to the printer device 101. Incertain cases, the removable unit 103 may be mounted on castors. In someexamples, the movement of the removable unit 103 may be whollyautomated.

The material processing station 102 is arranged to perform materialprocessing operations in relation to a print job. The materialprocessing station 102 may have multiple functions. In one case, thematerial processing station 102 is arranged to load the removable unit103 with build material to be used to construct a 3D object. In certaincases, e.g. in addition to, or instead of, loading the removable unit103, the material processing station 102 is arranged to perform a numberof post-processing operations. These may comprise: “un-caking” or“un-packing” the 3D object (e.g. removing un-fused build material thatis still in a powder form); clean parts of the 3D object and/orremovable unit 103; and/or reclaim leftover build material for recyclingor disposal.

FIGS. 1 a, 1 b and 1 c shows a number of phases wherein the printerdevice 101, the removable unit 103 and the material processing stations102 are used together to manufacture a 3D object. In a first phase, andas shown in FIG. 1 a , the removable unit 103 is engaged with thematerial processing station 102. The material processing station 102 isconfigured to prepare, e.g. mix, the build materials for 3D printing andload the removable unit 103 with these materials ready for printing.Mixing build materials may comprise reviewing print job data and loadingdifferent types, amounts and/or colours of polymer powder into theremovable unit 103.

FIG. 1 b shows the second phase, whereby after pre-processing andloading of the build material by the material processing station 102into the removable unit 103, the removable unit 103 is disengaged fromthe material processing unit 102, and may be moved from the materialprocessing station 102 and engaged with a printer device 101 for thenext phase—additive manufacturing. If the removable unit 103 is mountedupon castors this may comprise wheeling the unit from the materialprocessing station 102 to the printer device 101. In other cases, theremovable unit 103 may be moved by hand (e.g. carried) and/or movedusing an automated (e.g. robotic) processing line. Once the removableunit 103 is coupled with the printer device 101, build material is takenfrom the removable unit 103 and arranged in a series of layers within aworking area (e.g. upon a build platform). The printer device 101 maydeposit printing agents onto these layers of build material based onprint job instructions. The printer device 101 may also apply fusingenergy to solidify portions of the build material on which fusing agentwas applied.

As shown in FIG. 1 c , after the additive manufacturing of the 3D objecthas been completed, the removable unit 103 is disengaged from theprinter device 101. It is then moved and re-engaged with the materialprocessing station 102 for post-processing, such as “un-caking” the 3Dobject, cleaning parts, and reclaiming the leftover powder for recyclingor disposal.

FIG. 2 shows a comparative 3D printing system 200 comprising a printerdevice 101, a material processing station 102, and a removable unit 103(i.e. the components shown in FIGS. 1 a to 1 c ). The removable unit 103is moveable between both the printer device 101 and the materialprocessing station 102. FIG. 2 also shows a user terminal 210 running aprint application. The user terminal 210 may comprise a designworkstation. In the example of FIG. 2 , the user terminal 210 isconnected to the 3D print system across a network connection 250. Inother cases, the user terminal 10 may be directly coupled to the printerdevice 101, e.g. using a universal serial bus connection. A comparativeprocess for 3D printing involves submitting instructions for printablecontent from the user terminal 210 to the printer device 101, e.g. overthe network connection 250. For example, a user may load a 3D object asdefined in a 3D model file (e.g. a STereoLithography ‘.STL’ file) withina print application. The user may then submit the 3D object to beprinted (e.g. by clicking a “print” button). Data defining the 3D objectmay then be processed by a 3D print driver into instructions for a 3Dprint job. Processing of data defining the 3D object may be performed bythe user terminal 210 and/or the printer device 101. In this comparativeprocess, the material processing station 102 and removable unit 103 are“dumb”, i.e. they are not party to the information that is exchangedbetween the user terminal 210 and the printer device 101 and areun-connected/non-networked units.

Certain examples described herein provide an alternate process forinstructing a 3D printing system that uses adapted components of theprinting system. In this alternate process, print job instructions arecommunicated to a removable unit. When the removable unit is engagedwith a printer device to supply build material, the print jobinstructions may also be communicated from the removable unit to theprinter device. In certain cases, the print job instructions may becommunicated directly to the removable unit. In other cases, the printjob instructions may be first communicated to a material processingstation and then transferred to the removable unit duringpre-processing, i.e. when the removable unit is engaged with thematerial processing station. In certain examples, the materialprocessing station may also receive the print job instructions from theremovable unit, which may be used to control pre- and/or post-processingat the material processing station.

FIG. 3 a shows an example printer device 301. The printer device 301 isarranged to perform additive manufacturing to produce at least one 3Dobject. In this case, the printer device 301 comprises a coupling 311 toengage with a removable unit, a print controller 312 to use buildmaterial stored within an engaged removable unit to complete athree-dimensional print job, and a data transfer interface 313 toreceive instructions for the three-dimensional print job from theengaged removable unit. The coupling 311 may comprise a mechanicalcoupling with at least two states: engaged and unengaged. The coupling311 on the printer device 301 may be arranged so as to mate with acorresponding coupling on the removable unit. The data transferinterface 313 may comprise a wired and/or wireless interface. Forexample, the data transfer interface 313 may comprise a physicalinterface over which print job instructions are transferred as a seriesof electrical signals. In the case of a wireless interface, the datatransfer interface 313 may comprise a Bluetooth®, Zigbee® or IEEE 802.11interface.

FIG. 3 b shows an example material processing station 302. The materialprocessing station 302 comprises a coupling 321 to engage with aremovable unit of the three-dimensional print system, a material supplysystem 322 to load an engaged removable unit with build material for athree-dimensional print job, and a data transfer interface 323 tocommunicate instructions for the three-dimensional print job between anengaged removable unit and the material processing station 302. Thecoupling 321 may be arranged as discussed above with respect to theprinter device 301. The coupling 321 may be the same as or may differfrom the coupling 311 of the printer device 301. The data transferinterface 323 may comprise a wired and/or wireless interface asdiscussed above. It may be the same as or may differ from the datatransfer interface 313 of the printer device 301. The material supplysystem 322 may comprise a vacuum system, or auger screw-type mechanism,arranged to extract build material from at least one build materialsupply containers and to deposit a predefined amount of build materialinto at least one compartment of the removable unit. The material supplysystem 322 may mix different types of build material, in controlledamounts, that are supplied from different build material supplycontainers. In certain cases the material supply system 322 may userecycled build material, e.g. build material that has been extractedduring an “un-caking” process for a past 3D object.

FIG. 3 c shows an example removable unit 303 for a three-dimensionalprint system. The removable unit 303 comprises at least one compartment331 to store build material for a three-dimensional print job. Thecompartment 331 may be lined, e.g. comprise a bag or box within aphysical enclosure, or unlined, e.g. comprise the physical enclosure. Ifmultiple types of build material are available, multiple compartmentsmay be provided for each type. Alternatively, different mixes of buildmaterials may be stored in different compartments. The removable unit303 also comprises a coupling 332 to engage with the printer device 301or the material processing station 302 of the three-dimensional printsystem. The coupling 332 may be a single mechanical coupling that isconfigured to mate with corresponding features on both the printerdevice 301 and the material processing station 302. Alternatively, thecoupling 332 may comprise separate couplings for each of the printerdevice 301 and the material processing station 302. The coupling 332 maycomprise a power coupling and/or an electronic coupling as well as aphysical coupling.

The removable unit 303 also comprises a memory 333 for storing print jobinstructions. The removable unit may also optionally comprise a datatransfer interface 334 and/or a controller 335 to receive and send printjob instructions, and to store print job instructions in the memory 333.The print job instructions may comprise information for manufacturing a3D print object, including (but not limited to): the amount andcomposition of print materials to be used; the dimensions of the 3Dprint object to be manufactured; the identity of components in a 3Dprinter system to be used (e.g. a particular printer device); and themovement and/or firing of a printing agent deposition mechanism so as tofuse portions of build material that form part of an object's crosssection to create such an object. The print job instructions should bereadable by each component in the 3D print system corresponding to theinstruction. The memory 333 of the removable unit 303 is configured toreceive and store instructions for the print job, and, when engaged withthe printer device 301 (e.g. such as shown in FIG. 1 b ), theinstructions may be read by the printer device, for example via the datatransfer interface 334. In one example, the instructions are receivedand directed to the memory 333 by the controller 335 of the removableunit 303. The data transfer interface 334 may transmit print jobinstructions to or via the data transfer interface 313 of the printerdevice 301. In one case, the data transfer interface 334 may comprise aphysical connector that mates with a physical connector forming part ofthe data transfer interface 313 of the printer device 301 such thatprint job instructions may be communicated from the memory 333 to theprint controller 312 of the printer device 301. If the data transferinterfaces comprise wireless interfaces, then the print job instructionsmay be transmitted from the removable unit 303 over the air such thatthey are received by the data transfer interface 313 of the printerdevice 301, wherein the data transfer interface 313 then relays theinstructions to the print controller 312. In one example, the datatransfer is handled by the controller 335 of the removable unit 303.

FIG. 4 shows a removable unit 303 and multiple printer devices 301 a,301 b, 301 c according to FIG. 3 a and FIG. 3 c . In the example shown,instead of providing the instructions directly to the printer device 301a, 301 b, 301 c as shown in FIG. 2 , print job instructions for at leastone 3D object to be manufactured are supplied to the removable unit 303.The removable unit 303 internally stores build materials for the atleast one 3D object associated with the print job, e.g. in compartment331. In FIG. 4 , the removable unit 303 engages with a given printerdevice 301 a, 301 b, 301 c of the 3D print system, and instructs theengaged printer device using the print job instructions from theremovable unit 303. The engaged printer device (one of 301 a, 301 b, 301c) is then able to generate the at least one three-dimensional objectwith the build materials from the removable unit 303. In this manner, aprinter device is selected for the print job by engaging the removableunit 303, wherein data for the print job is transferred from theremovable unit 303. This allows greater flexibility when controlling a3D print pipeline and enables more efficient use of available printerdevices 301 a, 301 b, 301 c.

For example, in a comparative case using a known method, a printapplication may distribute print jobs between printer devices 301. Eachprinter device 301 may thus have a print queue. If printer device 301 ahas a number of pending print jobs, any subsequently received print jobreceived by it is added to the end of the queue. A user thus waits forthe pending print jobs to complete. This is the case even if one of theother printer devices 301 b or 301 c is subsequently free. With theexamples described above, the selection of a printer device 301 is madewhen a particular removable unit 303 storing the print job is engaged.This enables a choice of printer device 301 to be made. For example, ifa user intends to print to printer device 301 a but printer device 301 ais busy and one of printer devices 301 b or 301 c is free, then adifferent selection of printer device may be made by engaging theremovable unit 303 with one of printer devices 301 b or 301 c ratherthan printer device 301 a. Following engagement, the instructions forthe print job are transferred to one of printer devices 301 b or 301 cand the respective print controller 312 may use these instructions toinitiate the print job. Similarly, if a user is waiting for printerdevice 301 b to become free, but this device subsequently experiences afault or error, a waiting removable unit 303 may simpler be moved towait for another printer device (e.g. 301 a or 301 c) withoutreconfiguration of the print queues on the printer devices 301.

FIG. 5 shows a 3D print system 500 comprising multiple printer devices501 a, 501 b, 501 c, a material processing station 502 and a removableunit 503 according to an example. The printer devices 501 a, 501 b, 501c, material processing station 502 and removable unit 503 may correspondto those shown in FIGS. 3 a, 3 b and 3 c . In the example shown,instructions for a print job are provided to the 3D print system 500from a computer device 510 running a print application. The printapplication may comprise a 3D modelling application and/or a printserver. In one case, the print job may be received from a servercomputer device running a print server, wherein the print serverreceives the print job from the print application.

In the example of FIG. 5 , the instructions are relayed to the 3D printsystem 500 via a network connection 551. The network connection 551couples the computer device 510 and the material processing station 502.For example, the network connection 551 may form part of a local areanetwork (LAN) or wide area network (WAN). It may comprise a wired orwireless connection (e.g. an Ethernet or WiFi connection). In theexample shown, the material processing station 502 comprises a networkinterface 552 to receive the print job over the network connection 551.In certain cases, the material processing station 502 comprises acontroller and memory. Following receipt of the print job at the networkinterface 552, the controller may be configured to store the print jobwithin the memory until a removable unit 503 is engaged.

In use, the removable unit 503 is engaged with the material processingstation 502 so as to perform at least one pre-processing operationbefore manufacturing a 3D object. This engagement may be enacted bymating the coupling 332 of the removable unit 503 with the coupling 321of the material processing station. This may comprise coupling one ormore connectors or fasteners and/or engaging a mechanical couplingmechanism to lock the removable unit 503 within the material processingstation 502. In one case, the removable unit 503 comprises castors andis wheeled into position within the coupling of the material processingstation 502.

In one case, the material processing station 502 may be arranged toprepare, mix and load the removable unit 503 with the build materialsfor to completing the 3D print job defined within the received printjob. In one case, a controller of the material processing station 502 isconfigured to determine an amount of build material to supply to anengaged removable unit 503 based on instructions defining the print job,e.g. as stored in a memory of the material processing station 502. Inthis case, a material supply system of the material processing station502 may be arranged to supply the determined amount of build materialfrom at least one build material supply container to a compartment ofthe engaged removable unit 503. In an additional, or alternative, case,the aforementioned controller may be configured to determine a type ofbuild material to supply to the engaged removable unit based on theinstructions in the memory. In this case, the material supply system maybe arranged to supply the determined type of build material from atleast one build material supply container containing said type to acompartment of the engaged removable unit 503. In one case, thecontroller is configured to control mixing of build material ofdifferent types from a respective plurality of build material supplycontainers based on the instructions in the memory.

Following engagement, in the example of FIG. 5 , the material processingstation 502 is configured to communicate the received print job to theremovable unit 503. This may comprise relaying instructions from datatransfer interface 323 of the material processing station 502 to thedata transfer interface 334 of the removable unit 503, and storing saidinstructions in the memory 333 of the removable unit 503. The transferor relay of instructions may be performed by transmitting and receivingdata over physical or wireless communications interfaces. The receivedprint job may be transferred before, during or after the loading ofbuild material into the removable unit. The transfer of the print jobmay be, in one case, initiated by a user interacting with a userinterface of the material processing station 502 (e.g. a touchscreeninterface). For example, once a removable unit 503 has been successfullyengaged a user may be offered an option to download one or more printjobs that are stored in a memory of the material processing station 502onto the removable unit 503. In one case, a user may be presented withone or more print jobs that are stored on a remote print server; uponselection by the user these print jobs may be transferred over thenetwork connection 551 and then downloaded into the removable unit 503.In another case, a print job may be assigned to a particular removableunit 503 by the print application. In this case, an identifier of anengaged removable unit 503 may be read from the unit by the materialprocessing station 502 and compared with data for at least one print job(stored either locally or remotely). If a match is found, then at leastone print job associated with the identifier may be downloaded onto theremovable unit 503.

Once the instructions have been transferred, and, for example, at leastone compartment of the removable unit 503 has been loaded with suitablematerial for the 3D print job, said unit 503 may be disengaged from thematerial processing station 502. This may comprise releasing at leastone mechanical coupling and/or disconnecting any electrical couplings.The removable unit 503 may then be moved, e.g. rolled or carried, to theprinter devices 501.

In FIG. 5 , the removable unit 503 is subsequently engaged with aprinter device 501 of the 3D print system 500. Because the printinstructions are stored in a memory 333 of the removable unit 503, theremovable unit 503 may be engaged with any available printer device 501a, 501 b, 501 c in the 3D print system 500. Once the removable unit 503in engaged with a given printer device 501 a, 501 b, 501 c of the 3Dprint system 500, the instructions may be provided, via the datatransfer interface 334 of the removable unit 503, to the data transferinterface 313 of the printer device 501. The print controller 312 of theprinter device 501 uses the print job instructions and material from theremovable unit 503 to carry out manufacturing of the 3D print object.

In a further example, once the printer device 501 has finished the 3Dbuild phase, the removable unit 503 may be dis-engaged once more fromthe printer device 501. This may comprise releasing at least onemechanical coupling and/or disconnecting any electrical couplings. Theremovable unit 503 may then be moved, e.g. rolled or carried, back tothe material processing station 502. Once the removable unit 503 hasbeen re-engaged with the material processing station 502,post-processing steps may be carried out, for example such as:“un-caking” the 3D object (e.g. removing un-fused build material that isstill in a powder form); cleaning parts of the 3D object and/orremovable unit 503; and/or reclaim leftover build material for recyclingor disposal.

FIG. 6 shows a 3D print system 600 comprising multiple printer devices601 a, 601 b, 601 c, multiple material processing stations 602 a, 602 b,602 c and a removable unit 603 according to an example. The printerdevices 601 a, 601 b, 601 c, material processing stations 602 a, 602 b,602 c and removable unit 603 may correspond to those shown in FIGS. 3 a,3 b and 3 c . In the example shown, instructions for a print job areprovided to the 3D print system 600 from a computer device 610 running aprint application. The print application may comprise a 3D modellingapplication and/or a print server. In one case, the print job may bereceived from a server computer device running a print server, whereinthe print server receives the print job from the print application.

In the example of FIG. 6 , the instructions are relayed to the 3D printsystem 600 via a network connection 651. The network connection 651couples the computer device 610 and the removable unit 603. For example,the network connection 651 may form part of a local area network (LAN)or wide area network (WAN). It may comprise a wired or wirelessconnection (e.g. an Ethernet or WiFi connection). In the example shown,the removable unit 603 comprises a wireless network interface to receivethe print job instructions over the wireless network connection 651. Theremovable unit 603 comprises a memory 333, and optionally a controller335. Following receipt of the print job instructions at a wirelessnetwork interface, the memory 333 may be configured to store the printjob instructions. In some examples, the instructions are handled by thecontroller 335 of the removable unit 603.

Once the print job instructions have been received and stored in thememory 333 of the removable unit 603, the removable unit 303 may beengaged with one of the multiple material processing stations 602 a, 602b, 602 c. Since the print job instructions are stored on the removableunit 603, the option to engage the removable device 603 with one of amultitude of material processing stations 602 a, 602 b, 602 c providesfurther benefits to the system 600. For example, if a user intends toutilise a first material processing station 602 a, but it is already inuse, then an alternative material processing station 602 b, 603 c may beselected by engaging the removable unit 603 with one of the availablematerial processing stations 602 b, 602 c in the print system 600,rather than the first, occupied material processing station 602 a. Thisengagement may be enacted by mating the coupling 332 of the removableunit 603 with a coupling 321 of the chosen material processing station602. This may comprise coupling one or more connectors or fastenersand/or engaging a mechanical coupling mechanism to lock the removableunit 603 within the material processing station 602. In one case, theremovable unit 603 comprises castors and is wheeled into position withinthe coupling of the material processing station 602.

Following engagement, the instructions for the print job are transferredto the material processing station 602. In certain cases, the materialprocessing station 602 comprises a controller and memory. Followingreceipt of the print job from the engaged removable unit 603, thecontroller may be configured to store the print job within the memory soas to perform at least one pre-processing operation before manufacturinga 3D object. In one case, the material processing station 602 may bearranged to prepare, mix and load the removable unit 603 with the buildmaterials for completing the 3D print job defined within the receivedprint job instructions. In one case, a controller of the materialprocessing station 602 is configured to determine an amount of buildmaterial to supply to the engaged removable unit 603 based oninstructions defining the print job instructions, e.g. as stored in amemory of the material processing station 602. In this case, a materialsupply system of the material processing station 602 may be arranged tosupply the determined amount of build material from at least one buildmaterial supply container to a compartment 331 of the engaged removableunit 603. In an additional, or alternative, case, the aforementionedcontroller may be configured to determine a type of build material tosupply to the engaged removable unit 603 based on the instructions inthe memory. In this case, the material supply system 602 may be arrangedto supply the determined type of build material from at least one buildmaterial supply container containing said type to a compartment 331 ofthe engaged removable unit 603. In one case, the controller isconfigured to control mixing of build material of different types from arespective plurality of build material supply containers based on theinstructions in the memory.

Once the material preparation and/or supply has been completed for the3D print job, the removable unit 603 may be disengaged from the materialprocessing station 602. This may comprise releasing at least onemechanical coupling and/or disconnecting any electrical couplings. Theremovable unit 603 may then be moved, e.g. rolled or carried, to aprinter devices 601.

In FIG. 6 , the removable unit 603 is subsequently engaged with aprinter device 601 of the 3D print system 600. As described above forthe example shown in FIG. 5 , the removable unit 603 may be engaged withany one of a plurality of print devices 601 a, 601 b, 601 c, and themanufacturing of the 3D object carried out as described before.

In a further example, once the printer device 601 has finished the 3Dbuild phase, the removable unit 603 may be dis-engaged once more fromthe printer device 601. This may comprise releasing at least onemechanical coupling and/or disconnecting any electrical couplings. Theremovable unit 603 may then be moved, e.g. rolled or carried, back toone of the plurality of material processing stations 602 a, 602 b, 602 cfor post-processing. The removable unit 603 may engage with anyavailable material processing station 602 a, 602 b, 602 c, andimportantly, not necessarily the same material processing station 602used in the pre-processing stage. In one example, the coupling,decoupling and/or moving of the removable unit 603 to/from at least oneof a material processing station 602 a, 602 b, 602 c and print device601 a, 601 b, 601 c may be fully automated.

FIG. 7 shows a flowchart of an example method 700 of instructing a 3Dprint system. In a first block 710, the method comprises supplying printjob instructions for at least one three-dimensional object to aremovable unit of a three-dimensional print system, wherein theremovable unit stores build material for the at least onethree-dimensional object.

In a second block 720, the removable unit is engaged with a printerdevice of the three-dimensional print system.

In a third block 730, the printer device is instructed, using the printjob instructions provided by the removable unit, to generate the atleast one three-dimensional object with the build materials from theremovable unit.

In a further example of the method outlined above, prior to supplyingthe print job instructions to the removable unit, the removable unit isengaged with a material processing station, and the removable unit isloaded with the build materials for the at least one 3D object.

In a further example, supplying the 3D print job instructions to theremovable unit comprises engaging the removable unit with a materialprocessing station, and communicating the print job instructions fromthe material processing station to a memory of the removable unit.

In a further example of the method, prior to relaying the print jobinstructions to the removable unit, the print job instructions are sentfrom a print application to the material processing station.

In a further example method, supplying print job instructions to theremovable unit comprises transmitting the print job instructions to theremovable unit using a wireless communications channel.

FIG. 8 shows a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium 800comprising a set of computer-readable instructions 810, 820, 830. Thereis also provided a processor 800 of an additive manufacturing systemconfigured to carry out the stored instructions. When the instructions810, 820, 830 are executed by the processor 800, they cause theprocessor to: determine that a build material supply unit is coupled tothe additive manufacturing system (block 810); obtain three-dimensionalobject build data from the build material supply unit (block 820); andbuild at least one three-dimensional object using the additivemanufacturing system according to the object build data (block 830).

The above examples enable more flexible and efficient device usage inhigh-productivity 3d printing environments. This includes quickerrecovery in the case of a single device failure, and more efficient jobqueuing.

The above examples are to be understood as illustrative only, andfurther examples are envisaged. For example, the data transfer interfaceincorporated by any of the printer device 301, material processingstation 302 or removable unit 303 may be configured to transfer data byany suitable protocol, for example wireless, Bluetooth®, wired, radio,infra read, USB, near field communication, etc.

In a further example, only the initial print instruction receivingdevice (i.e. the material processing station 302 or the removable unit303 as per the examples described above) are connected to a network. Inthis example the remaining devices in the 3D print system are “dumb”,i.e. not connected to the network. In a comparative example, allelements of the 3D print system are connected to a network.

In a further example, individual 3D print jobs may be tracked by a userat a user terminal through a print application, or another devicemonitoring application. In an example where the print instructions areinitially submitted to a material processing station, the applicationmay have visibility of each network-connected device in the 3D printingenvironment and a unique ID of the 3D print job to be tracked. A querymay be forwarded to each known device on the network searching for aspecific job, and the progress of the given 3D print job can be reportedback to the user terminal accordingly. Alternately, in another example,the various network-connected devices in the 3D print system may use anactive eventing model whereby any event related to a specific 3D printjob is published and all subscribers to job events receivenotifications. In an example where the print instructions are initiallyprovided to the removable unit of a 3D print system, if the removableunit is always network-connected, e.g. via a wireless networkconnection, each 3D print job may be easily tracked, since thesubmitting application may be provided with information regarding theremovable unit that receives the instructions, and the corresponding 3Dprinter devices and material processing stations that the removable unitengages with. In this example, the application does not need to scan allof the network material processing stations and 3D printer devices inorder to locate and get information about jobs in progress.

In another example, the 3D print system may comprise a plurality of 3Dprinter devices 101, removable units 103 and material processingstations 102. A removable unit 103 may engage with any available 3Dprinter device, and any available material processing station, notnecessarily the same material processing station in the pre-processingstage as in the post-processing stage.

The 3D print system described above may employ any “pre-load” powder bedfusion (additive manufacturing) method, including, but not limited to:powder bed and inkjet 3D printing; electron beam additive manufacturing;direct metal laser sintering (DMLS); selective heat sintering (SHS);selective laser sintering (SLS); and selective laser melting.

It is to be understood that any feature described in relation to any oneexample may be used alone, or in combination with other featuresdescribed, and may also be used in combination with one or more featuresof any other of the examples, or any combination of any other of theexamples. Furthermore, equivalents and modifications not described abovemay also be employed without departing from the scope of the disclosure,which is defined in the accompanying claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A removable unit for a three-dimensionalprinting system that includes a three-dimensional printer device and amaterial processing station, the removable unit comprising: acompartment configured to store a build material to be used by thesystem during processing of a three-dimensional print job; a couplingconfigured to engage with the three-dimensional printer device and withthe material processing station; and a memory storing instructions forthe three-dimensional print job for the three-dimensional printer deviceto manufacture a 3D print object, the instructions including an amountof the build material to be used by the three-dimensional printer deviceto manufacture the 3D print object, a dimension of the 3D print object,and/or firing information for a printing agent deposition mechanism ofthe three-dimensional printer device.
 2. The removable unit of claim 1,wherein the coupling comprises: a first coupling configured to engagewith the three-dimensional printer device; and a second couplingconfigured to engage with the material processing station.
 3. Theremovable unit of claim 1, wherein the memory is configured to, when thecoupling is engaged with the material processing station, receive theinstructions from the material processing station.
 4. The removable unitof claim 1, wherein: the instructions stored on the memory are readableby the material processing station when the coupling is engaged with thematerial processing station; and/or the instructions stored on thememory are readable by the three-dimensional printer device when thecoupling is engaged with the three-dimensional printer device.
 5. Theremovable unit of claim 1, comprising a wireless network interfaceconfigured to receive the instructions from a print application.
 6. Aremovable unit for a three-dimensional printing system that includes athree-dimensional printer device and a material processing station, theremovable unit comprising: a compartment configured to store a buildmaterial to be used by the system during processing of athree-dimensional print job; a coupling configured to engage with thethree-dimensional printer device and with the material processingstation; and a memory configured to, when the coupling is engaged withthe material processing station, receive and store instructions from thematerial processing station for the three-dimensional printer device tomanufacture a 3D print object.
 7. The removable unit of claim 6, whereinthe coupling comprises a mechanical coupling and a data transferinterface comprising an electrical coupling that is integrated with themechanical coupling.
 8. The removable unit of claim 6, wherein theinstructions include an amount of the build material to be used by thethree-dimensional printer device to manufacture the 3D print object. 9.The removable unit of claim 6, wherein the instructions include adimension of the 3D print object.
 10. The removable unit of claim 6,wherein the instructions include firing information for a printing agentdeposition mechanism of the three-dimensional printer device tomanufacture the 3D print object.
 11. A removable unit for athree-dimensional printing system that includes a three-dimensionalprinter device and a material processing station, the removable unitcomprising: a compartment configured to store a build material to beused by the system during processing of a three-dimensional print job; acoupling configured to engage with the three-dimensional printer deviceand with the material processing station; a memory configured to, whenthe coupling is engaged with the material processing station, receiveand store instructions from the material processing station for thethree-dimensional printer device to manufacture a 3D print object; andthe memory storing the instructions including an amount of the buildmaterial to be used by the three-dimensional printer device tomanufacture the 3D print object, a dimension of the 3D print object,and/or firing information for a printing agent deposition mechanism ofthe three-dimensional printer device.
 12. The removable unit of claim11, wherein the coupling comprises: a first coupling configured toengage with the three-dimensional printer device; and a second couplingconfigured to engage with the material processing station.
 13. Theremovable unit of claim 11, wherein the instructions stored on thememory are readable by the three-dimensional printer device when thecoupling is engaged with the three-dimensional printer device.
 14. Theremovable unit of claim 11, wherein the instructions include an amountof the build material to be used by the three-dimensional printer deviceto manufacture the 3D print object.
 15. The removable unit of claim 11,wherein the instructions include a dimension of the 3D print object. 16.The removable unit of claim 11, wherein the instructions include firinginformation for a printing agent deposition mechanism of thethree-dimensional printer device to manufacture the 3D print object.